“I'm Just Not Good at Kissing Butt”: An Interview with Survivor: Guatemala’s Cindy

by David Bloomberg -- 12/09/2005

Cindy made it to the final five and left with a nice new car, but does she think that car cost her the game? Could she have won if she kissed butt better? And what did she think of the overall experience? Cindy answers all these questions and more in her interview with RealityNewsOnline.

In the short amount of time since viewers saw Cindy voted out, there is already a heated debate as to whether she did the right thing by keeping the car or if giving cars to the others might have helped her stick around longer. In addition to a number of other questions, Cindy weighs in here with the answer. Read on to see what she has to say.

RealityNewsOnline: Hello, Cindy, and thanks for taking the time to answer these questions for RealityNewsOnline’s readers. What was it like for a person in your profession to be able to spend so much time in the wilds of Guatemala?

Cindy: It was incomparable to any opportunity that you would have at any zoological facility because we, as zookeepers, try to recreate their natural habitats as much as possible because the more natural we make it the more we can learn from the animals we have in zoos, about the ones in the wild. But to see them in their natural habitat gives you an insight that you can't get anywhere else and really deepens your appreciation for the wild.

RNO: What was your strategy coming into Survivor, and how did it change as the game progressed?

Cindy: Initially my strategy was to pay attention to people as much as possible because you can learn a lot by the way people interact with one another. To do my best, to keep my opinion to myself, which was quite a challenge for me. And to try to not appear to be as strong and as comfortable living under those circumstances as I actually was, until the end. I think I went in more as a under the radar player than originally anticipated as the game progressed. I think because I'm so quiet, people always underestimate me.

RNO: When Judd turned against you and Margaret after the tribal mix-up, did you think your goose was cooked, or had Judd at some point indicated that he planned to keep you in the new alliance?

Cindy: No, I didn’t think my goose was cooked because I seemed to get along with the new tribe better than I anticipated. And Judd as well – I knew he was on my side. I knew he would try to protect me. He gave me a sense that he was looking out for me in the very beginning.

RNO: When you came into the merge as part of the majority alliance, where did you see yourself among your allies – for example, final four, final two, etc.?

Cindy: I felt that at the beginning I probably was at the bottom of the magic 6 but knew that if given a little bit of time I could improve my position, and I did.

RNO: You were left out of the decision to vote off Judd, but if they had told you, would you have gone along with it or tried to help him turn the tide?

Cindy: I would have gone along with it – I didn’t have a problem going along with it. It was a game. We're all there to get further than somebody else. I'm not there to take my best friend to the end – I'm there to win. And if they really are my friend they will be there when the game's over. I didn’t want Stephenie to beat me – my mission from the time I was in the game was to beat her. RNO: After watching your final episode and seeing Rafe’s comments about how he could not have voted against you if you’d given them all cars, do you think things might have turned out better for you if you had given up the car?

Cindy: No I don’t because at that point they saw me as a physical threat, which wouldn’t have changed if they had cars or not. If nothing else it would have put me in a greater position of power which again would have doubled my threat because Danni and Lydia still would have wanted to get rid of me.

RNO: Why do you think you were unable to persuade Stephenie to stay on your side?

Cindy: Because Rafe is the ring leader, Stephenie is the messenger and she knows in order to get further in the game, she has to go with the majority. Rafe had a alliance with Danni so that creates a majority vote. And Lydia is right there with them.

RNO: Do you agree with Rafe’s assertion that you could have beaten either him or Stephenie if you made it to the final two?

Cindy: Yes I totally agree with that because he said it last night – I had not betrayed a single person in the game, so no one on the jury had a reason not to vote for me. Gary had some sort thing against me but compared to Rafe or Stephanie I still think he might have voted for me and picked the lesser of the two evils. RNO: If you could go back and do it over, what would you do differently?

Cindy: If I had complete control I would have won that immunity. I was close but didn’t get there in time. Because I think that would have ultimately affected the outcome of the game. If I had immunity I think I would have made the final two. Or maybe to try to sweet talk Danni and Lydia into voting out Stephenie because obviously Danni's not voting for Rafe, but I could have gotten rid of Stephenie. I'm just not good at kissing butt – it would have been to hard to do that. Especially when I knew they had a thing against me and had been trying to get rid of me for weeks.

RNO: Is there anything else you’d like to tell us about your time on Survivor?

Cindy: I just want people to understand how real it becomes so quickly. When I was there, I was only there for 36 days but I had already disconnected from life before that and the things that were important to me. And completely accepted this as my new life – my new way of life and my new social circle. It was like my real life was a distant memory – a fond memory, but a memory I was able to let go of.

Cindy Hall from "Survivor" will drive home happy, but not rich. She won a new Pontiac on last night's episode of "Survivor: Guatemala" but later was voted out during the Tribal Council.

Host Jeff Probst pointed out that no car winner in the history of the show has ever gone on to win the million bucks.

Cindy had the option of giving up her car, while giving new cars to each of the other contestants. But Cindy decided to keep the car and perhaps lost some votes.

The zookeeper from Florida has no hard feelings. She says she has memories that are priceless.

Cindy Hall spoke with "Life Around the Bay" anchor Dave Wirth about her experiences on the show.

The two-hour "Survivor: Guatemala" finale can be seen Sunday at 8:00 pm on Tampa Bay's 10, followed by the live reunion show.

Transcript:

Dave: Cindy Hall, welcome. Are you enjoying your car?

Cindy: I don't actually have the car yet. I don't get that until after the Finale.

Dave: You drove it around Guatemala a little bit. Did it feel pretty good?

Cindy: It drives very nice. Very smooth suspension.

Dave: Are you glad you got the car and made the decision you did rather than give all of your tribemates their four cars?

Cindy: I am glad I made that decision because I did have the opportunity to take something away from the game. Regardless of whether I was voted out that night or went further. I was guaranteed that car was mine. I just think you should take advantage of every opportunity when it comes your way in that game. I do think my fate was predetermined before that challenge ever took place.

Dave: Jeff Probst made a big deal about the curse of the car. Does anyone ever really believe in that?

Cindy: Some people may, otherwise it wouldn't be such a big deal. But it wasn't the curse of the car. The curse is being a competitor and being strong. My curse was winning that challenge. It wouldn't have mattered what the reward was. That suddenly made me look like I was more of a physical threat.

Dave: Last week Stephenie was handed a [Reward - family visit] favor by Judd. You would have thought that she would have gone along with him but she voted him out last week. Then last night you took her along on your reward and she voted you out. Is Steph running the show now?

Cindy: It would appear that way but actually Rafe is the one running the show. He is the ringleader. Stephenie is his messenger which is bad for her, beneficial for him but also we have to give Rafe credit for masterminding such a plan. Definitely he is calling the shots. We saw that because of me going home when I did. Stephenie was ready to get rid of Danni. She cheered her drink to me and said "to the Final Four." She was confident it was going to be me and Rafe and herself and Lydia in the Final Four, just as we planned. We had to get rid of Danni. For some reason Rafe decided that wasn't his plan. Stephenie had to vote for me to go along with her group to save herself in the future of the game. Her vote would not have saved me. I don't really feel bitter towards Stephenie for voting me out even though I shared my reward with her. She had to do what she had to do. It wouldn't have saved me for her to not vote for me. Dave: How did Rafe get all of this power?

Cindy: I guess people just did not see him as being the threat that he is. He kinda seemed uncoordinated but yet he always pulled off the challenges. He is easy to get along with. He makes you feel at ease when you're talking to him. He's very open-minded and lighthearted about a lot of things. It's difficult not to let your guard down around him. That has definitely worked to his advantage.

Dave: The fact that you did turn out to be a strong competitor and a strong threat, obviously that worked against you, didn't it?

Cindy: It did work against me. My physical strength was ultimately my demise. It definitely was not the aspect of socialization in the game. I wasn't the most social player but as Rafe said last night, we all saw it, I have not betrayed a single person in that game. If I make it to the Final Two against any of the other people then I'll win. I had not betrayed anyone and everyone else had.

Dave: The situation was getting a bit intense down there. You were doing the nail thing quite a bit. Biting your nails, are they coming back now?

Cindy: They are coming back. I've always been a nail biter but it was exponential in Guatemala that last week. After I saw my sister I began chewing my nails beyond reason.

Dave: How is work down in Naples? Are you back to your job as a zookeeper?

Cindy: Actually no, I lost my job in pursuit of Survivor.

Dave: Sorry to hear that. Sounds like you're looking now.

Cindy: I am looking for another opportunity and I miss being with the animals and being outdoors and educating people about the environment. That was my life, my mission on a daily basis. I always felt like I had reached someone before the day was over and made a difference. Hopefully there's an opportunity in the future.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- HI Guys, thanks for the great questions, and don't forget to give me some good ones for the winner AND runner up-- we'll talk with both of them Monday.Thanks!

CINDY HALL/SURVIVOR #14 VOTED OUT

Q: You were faced with a tough choice... why did you decide to keep the car?

CH: I decided to keep the car because I knew that I already had a target on my back as far as being the next to go, and I wanted to make sure that if I had to leave the game, I left with something very memorable. I don't think giving cars to the rest of the contestants would have saved me at that point, because Danni already had an alliance with Rafe, and she had been pushing to get rid of me for a couple of weeks now, so I already had two forces working against me at that point, and I wasn't quite sure how it was gonna go with the rest of them, so I was just giving myself a little security.

Q: Rafe said if you had given everyone a car, he would never have been able to vote you out. Do you believe that?

CH: I don't believe it for a minute, because he had the alliance with Danni, and the plan of the four people, myself, Rafe, Lydia and Stephenie was to get rid of Danni next. Well, if he had an alliance with Danni, he wasn't going to vote her out, so I don't think that was the case. It wouldn't have happened.

Q: For Stephenie and Rafe, was it a bad decision strategically to vote you out, because it makes them look even more cut-throat to the jury?

CH: It's gonna really be hard on them facing the jury. I think every one of them is ridiculously silly for not realizing they needed to get rid of Rafe a long time ago, but you know, he's playing the game really well, and he's got them all convinced that it's safe to have him around, but I just don't know how they can't see it, but regardless, he's still there, so he's doing something right!

Q: Did you and Lydia and Danni ever talk about aligning together to vote out either Rafe or Stephenie?

CH: I tried to push the Stephemie thing early on, and I think Lydia was the only one who seemed starstruck by Stephenie, and Rafe and Danni just like seemed to kinda be on her side from the beginning. Definitely Rafe, because he was on her original tribe. And Danni is willing to be pals with her because she thinks she's a power player, and by aligning with a power player, you're allowing yourself to go further. So I just don't think they really see how necessary it is to eliminate that threat.

Q: Tell me how in the world Lydia got to the Final 4!

CH: I think she's made it because, number one, she's not a physical threat, you never have to worry about her beating you in any of the challenges, physically or mentally, even in the trivia challenges she was never a front-runner, so you don't have to worry about her getting immunity. She is very easily swayed in terms of where the vote is going, if you want her to vote with you and you say the right thing, it seems like it's a real simple deal to seal. And when it comes down to the final two, if you're in the final two with Lydia, she hasn't won any challenges, she hasn't been strong in stragey, so I don't think anyone's gonna want to give her a million dollars having not really played the game much. So there are a lot of reasons why people don't mind having Lydia around, not to mention that it's nice to have someone who has a smile on her face.

Q: What are your impressions of how Danni's playing the game right now?

CH: I'm surprised that Danni lasted this long, because she was targeted to be voted out long ago, and had she not won the immunity challenge where she changed places with Stephenie, she would have been the next to go. Really, it goes all the way back to the auction, where she purchased that secret clue, that really has saved her and allowed her to go as far as she has.

Q: Can we expect some fireworks at the finale?

CH: I really think the finale might have quite a bit of drama, simply because we haven't seen each other and talked to one another since it all went down, so you're kinda gonna get the fury from some of these people firsthand, their first initial reactions to one another, unloading everything that you wanted to unload in the game, but couldn't because you were afraid of getting voted out. Hey, the game's over, so everybody gets to say it!

Q: What criteria will you use to vote for the winner?

CH: It's hard to tell because there's still some game left, but I always thought if this were a situation I was put in, I would have to consider how they played the game. Depending on who the final two are, I would have to consider how much of the game did they really play, did they truly outwit, did they truly outplay, did they truly outlast? Because it's not so much about getting along with people and not being annoying just to stay in the game, and when you get into the final two with the jury, you have to convince the jury that you should have the money and the other person shouldn't. That's where your wits come in, you really have to use your brain at this point, and I'll be watching to see who uses their brain to the highest potential.

About Survivor Live: Every Friday join hosts Jenna Morasca and Dalton Ross for an exclusive interview with the Survivor voted off each week, fan phone calls and in-studio guests. Visit the official CBS website to hear live interviews with past Survivor: Guatemala cast-offs

[Cindy and her twin sister Mindy pull a switcheroo at the beginning of the show. Mindy is sitting in Cindy's seat and pretending to be Cindy.]

DR: Here's the real Cindy, you can't blame the car choice on her.

CH: It was all me. I don't think it was a poor decision. There was a target on me from the beginning, whether I won the car or not before that challenge took place. Danni wanted me out, Rafe had the alliance with her.

DR: I disagree. If you give them a car it doesn't mean you're going to win but don't you think it buys you some time?

JM: I think it gives you a free pass for three more days. You can't vote them off, they just gave you a free car.

DR: Rafe said that. Do you believe him?

CH Prior to this situation I would have thought that was the case. But him saying that was being selfish and it was obvious I should just give everyone a car and how could I even contemplate it and that I was rambling on and on about the car, made me realize that I don't think he knew me as well as I thought he did. He should have known that I would never be selfish and I wasn't rambling on and on. I was being prompted by everyone to give them information about the car. I was just answering their questions. He seems to have misjudged my character.

JM: Maybe he was a little bitter because he didn't get a car.

DR: Rafe said it was a no-brainer that he would have given the cars away in the spirit of giving. For me it would have been a no-brainer just strategically.

JM: Just to kiss butt. If you had 3 more days I think you would have been in the Final Two.

Cindy: Rafe said that I hadn't betrayed anybody and I would have won against any of them in the Final Two. They had betrayed everyone.

JM: Speaking of curses, it may not just be the car. It may be Steph. She's on losing tribes a lot. The two people that have taken her on rewards, you and Judd, are voted out the next night.

DR: We saw the week before when you weren't let in on the Judd thing and you said it perfectly, Judd wasn't let in on Jamie. I think if you had given the cars away and bought yourself more time then you would have had an excellent shot in the Final Four. Had you known that if you had given the cars away that it would have gotten you through this eviction, would you have given them away?

CH: If I knew it was going to guarantee me and immunity, then yeah. If I had won that immunity that Stephenie won I think I definitely would have been in the Final Two. But there are no guarantees. And this particular group has seemed really cut-throat. Judd helped Stephenie see her loved one and she cut him loose the next day. I could have given them all cars and then be cut loose the next day. I feel like I would have regardless.

<clip of Reward Challenge>

CH: I couldn't let Stephenie and Rafe go back to camp together. I took Rafe on one reward and Stephenie on the other. If you leave those two together all their gonna do is plot against ya. Stephenie was with me from the get-go, giving me toasts to the Final Four. She felt that Rafe would be right there with getting rid of Danni. I don't think she ever imagined that Rafe was gonna do that.

JM: I think Rafe is our puppetmaster.

CH: He's definitely the puppetmaster. I've been saying that all along. It's so obvious now. But he's playing very smart and using Stephenie as the scapegoat. He's calling the shots and she's the messenger so she looks like it's all her idea and the entire jury hates her now.

JM: In Survivor, we do shoot the messenger. Rafe is whispering in Steph's ear...hey guess what, Cindy's looking [strong]...and then Steph does the dirty work.

Caller: Everybody seemed to complain about the atmosphere, the bugs, the weather. You seemed to not complain about it, to almost kind of embrace it. At the last Tribal Council you were radiant. Was there anybody else that shared that with you?

CH: I don't think a single person in the entire game enjoyed the environment. If they enjoyed it, it was miniscule. I just relished every single day. I couldn't even believe that I got to hear these sounds and see these animals and live in this environment. I almost felt like the world I left behind was a distant memory and I had completely accepted that this was my life. I felt completely in touch with it and like I belonged there.

Caller: Cindy, have you watched Survivor in the past and if so who did you model yourself after?

CH: I watched all the shows except for the first one. I totally got into Australia, it was hard core. I knew I could do it. Past Survivors I would model myself after? I can't really pick one person. Kind of a mixture of a couple of different players. The one I would relate to the most would be Rupert. Rupert was real adventurous, really laid-back and into animals and the environment. He seemed to really get a full experience out of the opportunity that he had. He didn't go away from the game bitter even though he didn't win.

Caller: In that challenge where you used the keys to unlock the chains and the locks, how difficult was that and is there anything you could have done differently to speed up your time?

CH: The challenge wasn't physically grueling like pushing that 500 pound ball around. It was a relatively fast paced challenge so it wasn't long term. But it was hard to move through the ropes because you had your arms and your feet tied together. There were like a million keys and some of them looked very much the same. It was really hard to coordinate everything.

JM: I thought for sure we'd see at least a few Rafe tumbles.

CH: I thought so too because he's so uncoordinated.

JM: Lydia was falling off. I don't think she even cares anymore.

DR: You hear a lot of people talking about deserving. Where we're at right now, going to four people left, do you think she deserves to be there? Has she done enough strategically or physically or around camp?

CH: Lydia is a hard worker and I think Lydia's attribute is her attitude.

JM: I thought it was the pancake.

CH: That's a reflection of her personality. She wakes up with a smile on her face and she stays positive no matter what.

DR: You want to get rid of her when there are two tribes and she's holding you back but when it gets to individual you assume that she's no threat whatsoever to win immunity. She's not trying to turn the tables. Why not keep her around?

CH: If she's not doing anything, the jury is going to have a hard time giving her a million dollars for doing nothing.

JM: Exactly.

DR: But is that enough?

JM: Having a positive attitude is not a strategy.

DR: Do nothing, offend no one, not be a power player, follow the flow, not be a threat in challenges. It's not fun to watch. But is it smart?

JM: Is she playing like that or does she just not know any better?

CH: I think that by playing that way she's playing for 2nd.

JM: But is she playing that way or does she not know any better to do anything else?

CH: That's a hard call because sometimes it seemed like she knew what was going on and other times it seemed like she was oblivious.

JM: We'll find out. She's gonna want to strangle us.

DR: She's gonna strangle you.

JM: Rafe is gonna strangle you. He'll trip on the way over. I love Rafe!

DR: Take a quick 60 second breakDR: We're back. I had to defend Lydia because no one else was gonna do it.

JM: What I thought was funny, Rafe saying he was the only man left. Is that really true?

DR: Well, Lydia said that he's one of the girls.

JM: I think he is. It's kinda like we got an all girl thing going on.

CH: He didn't really seem to fill a masculine presence at all at camp.

JM: He always bonded with the women more than he bonded with the men. It's obviously a good strategy, all the men are sitting on the jury. He let himself be underestimated until a point where he needed to step up. People never really saw him as a physical threat.

DR: Let's talk about the whole lying thing. What constitutes a lie. Start with the Judd thing.

CH: I was not aware that Judd was being voted out.

DR: Did they tell you that it's going to be Lydia. Did they lie to you?

CH: Yeah, totally.

JM: I don't understand why they're leaving people out of the puzzle that would probably have voted for whoever they are voting for. Now you're just alienating someone else. Should they make it on the jury it's another reason to not give you a million dollars. I think that has totally escaped Stephenie's mind. Should she make the Final Two she is really in trouble with this jury.

DR: Major trouble.

JM: She better hope they're a jury from like my season who say, "you burned me but I respect it." I don't see that happening. I think this is a bitter jury.

DR: What do you do if they come to you and say "we're doing Judd tonight."

CH: I would have been okay with that because obviously at that point it's pretty much just trying to get yourself another three days in the game. It's different when there's five people left because you have to consider how the challenges are gonna go down.

Caller: A few weeks ago you guys seemed like you had a tight alliance, Rafe, Judd, Stephenie and you. Danni comes in out of nowhere and ya'll want to be her friend. That just does not make sense. What power does Danni have over getting all these people? She didn't even win immunity last night, Steph did.

CH: I think it flipped for Danni when she got Rafe on board. The family visit came and they were sent away to another camp. They had a common bitterness. I don't know if they were bitter about the family visit or not. They didn't seem to be that disturbed about it but maybe they were and they just decided, "hey let's bond together here, pull the wool over everyone's eyes and go to the end together."

JM: Well they promised each other the Final Two last night.

DR: No, she promised him Final Two.

JM: It seems like a lot of strategies and bonds are being made on these reward challenges.

DR: You seem to really not like Gary Hogeboom.

CH: I didn't have a problem with him. He's the one who started it. For whatever reason he targeted me one night at Tribal Council. It was a crazy vote, it wasn't going to matter. Maybe he was gonna try to start pushing buttons with me. Maybe he thought if he pushed my buttons I'd act up in camp. Then he went away on that reward with the four of them and said that Lydia and I did not deserve to be in the game. That is ridiculous. How can you put me in the same category as Lydia when it comes to playing the game.

JM: He's just trying to get in there. He wanted somebody to act up so he could do the quarterback sneak.

CH: I have a personal problem with someone saying I didn't deserve to be there because I have pursued this Survivor thing for a lonnnnng time. It is like the biggest dream I've ever had come true. They came right back to camp and said, "Cindy, he said you did not deserve to be here." I asked him about it and he lied. He sat by the fire every night just buttering Lydia up. I had my buff over my head acting like I was asleep. Then I ran back to everyone telling them what he was saying to Lydia.

DR: Well, he was pretty desperate. When you're desperate you gotta say things and push some buttons. I'm still stuck on the car.

<video clip of Danni and Rafe discussing Cindy's decision to keep the car>

DR: Rafe said no way he would have voted you off.

CH: I still think he would have voted me off. We went on that waterfall reward and emotionally bonded and now he's flipped around and says I'm selfish.

DR: I think Rafe needs to drop the "holier than thou - you have a chance to give away four." Stephenie hasn't been the best of losers, you take her on this reward, she has no problem with you keeping the car. Would that have been the case had you not brought her to the feast?

CH: I think she would have been fine with that, honestly.

JM: I think she would have been more mad that she didn't get to go to the barbecue.

CH: I think she'd had her fill of the food at that point and knew that she could make it another four days without a feast.

Caller: If Stephenie had not won immunity, any chance that she would have been targeted?

CH: I think she would have been targeted because she was next to me, the next biggest physical threat. Lydia has reason to vote her off. Danni has reason to vote her off.

DR: If you had won immunity and Lydia and Danni had come up to you and said, "let's take out Steph." Would you have gone with that?

CH: If I absolutely had to but I would rather have gotten rid of Rafe before Stephenie because Rafe is the brains of the operation. Without Rafe Stephenie would have been at a loss because she just lost her bosom buddy. She would be: Now I have to think for myself and come up with this stuff on my own.

JM: Then you run the risk of Steph wining all the immunities

CH: Rafe won all the immunities, more than Steph.

DR: Steph won one immunity.

JM: They plugged it the whole preseason, Stephenie's the strongest woman Survivor, ever. You automatically assume that she's probably won something. It's just not true.

CH: I think they consider her to be the strongest because she kept losing and still kept trying.

JM: There have been a lot of people on Survivor who lost and kept on trucking.

DR: Quick break.

Segment 3 Transcript

Segment 3:

Caller: Cindy you're the most honorable player in Survivor history. Why do you think Danni or Rafe think they deserve a car?

DR: I think it was more Rafe. Rafe was fueling the fire there. You obviously feel that Rafe is being a little presumptuous saying that you should have given him the car instead of kept it for yourself, right?

CH: Yeah, I'm surprised and disappointed that he would make it seem as if I were being selfish in keeping the car and not giving it to the rest. He was like, "Oh it's not even a choice, you don't even think about it. You can give four people a car". So you go with that and you give them the car even though they'll probably vote you out and you'll lose everything. But you should give everyone the car because it's the right thing to do. But the right thing to do is the stay with your alliance and the person that you have had such a connection. Why wouldn't you want to stay true to that.

JM: I think the right thing to do is out the window for this group.

DR: He's a cagey bastard, that Rafe. That's what's going on. We may have some expert analysis on the line. Tina Wesson.

Tina: Hey, how goes it.

JM: Hey Tina!

DR: Thanks for calling in.

Tina: You're welcome. I could not help it! I watched last night's episode and I was thinking of all the things that go through our head as former players. First of all, you knew that she was on the chopping block. I'm thinking, Cindy, use this to your advantage. All you need is three more days. The longer you stay, the more money you make. A car is not free. You're going to pay income tax on that car and sales tax. That free car is going to cost you about 15 grand. Say, "Okay guys, I will give you the car if you promise that you will not vote for me this next Tribal Council. And if you do vote for me, no you will not get my vote as a jury member." Buy yourself three more days.

DR: What if they all vote for you [to be booted at Tribal Council]?

JM: I think if you would have put them on the spot, they would have been like, "okay we won't vote for you."

DR: Tina is savvy. You are going to pay taxes.

JM: Tina and I did pay taxes on our cars.

Tina: At least she's paying it on a Pontiac Torrent instead of an Aztec.

JM: I love my Saturn Ion.

DR: So, Tina, you give away four [cars] but you give that little speech?

Tina: Absolutely give it away. Every single time. Not just for the game but how many times in your life do you get the opportunity to do something so kind for not one person but for three. Definitely, I'd give it away.

CH: It's a good strategy. It's just really hard when you're there and the pressure is on you and Jeff says, "Make a decision right now!" I was so excited that I beat Stephenie. I thought it was cool that I was pitted against her and beat her but I'm still all excited about winning. Then Jeff throws this wrench in your excitement. You don't have time to contemplate things.

DR: The one small part that made me want you to keep the car was that it felt so manipulative, such peer pressure. Bring out all the cars, make you feel like such a jerk unless you give these cars away. Did you feel that way, Tina?

Tina: Sure, Survivor does that time and time again. That's part of what the producers love. They love manipulating you and putting you in very terrible positions and seeing how are you going to react. You're starving and you're not really thinking clearly. You haven't slept. I think to some degree, and Cindy this is nothing against you, it brings out who you really truly are. Does Survivor portray who people really are? Yes.

JM: I say yes, too.

CH: All my life I've been the one to give things to people.

JM: You wanted to take something for yourself.

CH: I gave ten years of my life to my place of employment and then they fired me because I came to do Survivor. There are no guarantees in life. There are no guarantees in Survivor. You can give every ounce of your being and someone is still going to twist it around and take it away from you. I felt like I should take what I had while I could get it.

DR: Tina, I really appreciate you calling in.

JM: I love Tina. I think she's great and she was completely underrated. But Survivor is about putting you in miserable, uncomfortable situations. That's why these things happen.

DR: Let's look at this clip of Steph winning an Immunity Challenge. It's so rare that she wins and it may never happen again.

<video clip of Immunity Challenge>

DR: I thought this was one of those where they were editing it to make it look closer.

CH: It was actually a lot closer than it looks because Stephenie had to get all the knots out of her rope. Back when I first unlocked my rope I got all the knots out then. So I had all of my rope, all I had to do was unlock that lock. I would have been there while she's trying to untie her rope. DR: General sort of impressions of Stephenie and Bobby Jon as people that came back to play the game again. When they first showed up, were you a little star struck? Did you want an autograph as Gary said?

CH: I did not want an autograph. I was not star struck. The minute I saw Stephenie, I thought, that is the person that I have to beat if I am going to win this game. Because that is the only person that I felt was really going to stand in my way, physically. Later on, I realized mentally as well. Because she was Rafe's scapegoat and messenger. Had she not been there, Rafe and I did have a close relationship. I didn't want to be a scapegoat but I could have played it up.

JM: Interesting. Let's just take Lydia out of the equation. Steph, Danni, Rafe. I want to see them in the Final Three to see who are they gonna pick when they win the individual immunity. Somebody is going to be really pissed off.

DR: If I'm there I'm bringing Steph just figuring that she's upset people and...

JM: A past winner [player?]. Rafe is my Rob Cesternino. I wouldn't take him because I feel like he'd win.

DR: But Danni has been down in numbers the entire time and she's there. Sort of like Chris in Vanuatu. Let's take a look at the promo and then more with Cindy.

<clip of promo>

DR: It's time for Jenna Morasca's question of the week.

JM: So are you going to go back to being a zookeeper?

CH: If I were to go back to being a zookeeper I would have to move from where I live now. There's only one zoo where I live. That bridge has been burnt.

JM: So what do you have in mind to do after the show's over?

CH: Something where I can be a voice, an educator, get a message out and create an understanding of the environment. I spent the last ten years of my life on a stage where I got to teach people about animals. I need to be somewhere where I can talk about animals, teach people about animals, inspire people to do something. I'm not quite sure where that's going to be. Moving away from Florida is not really something that I'm ready to do. I really like it there.